Mammals

The name of this seal originates from the prominent rows of long, pale, spiralling whiskers on its snout, which create the impression of a beard. They haul themselves on to the floes for a rest and then dive between the broken ice to feed.

Belugas possess a remarkable ability to find open stretches of water in the Arctic pack ice, enabling them to surface and breathe in this environment. Beluga means "white" in Russian, so these whales are sometimes called white whales.

The Bengal Tigers live solitary lives, hunting on their own. They are opportunistic hunters, favouring large quarry, and have been known to attack people on occasion. These man-eaters are often injured or infirm, and can develop a taste for human flesh.

Occurring in suitable mountainous habitat across their extensive range, individual bighorn sheep populations tend to remain localized rather than mixing together. Bighorn sheep are the most common wild sheep in North America.

The unusual-sounding name of the binturong originates from a native language that died out some time ago, and its actual meaning is unknown. Also known as the bearcat, the binturong lives mainly off the ground in its rainforest home.

About 2000 years ago, the wisent — as the European bison is often known — ranged right across Europe and Asia from Britain to Siberia. However, persistent hunting pressure and forest clearance resulted in the species becoming extinct in the wild in 1927.

These particular bears favour thickly forested mountainous areas. They are highly territorial, with individual males occupying areas of up to 100 km2 (40 square miles). They live in the conifer forests of Canada and a few wilderness areas as far south as Mexico.

Only surpassed by the gibbons for grace and agility in the trees, the black spider monkey, with its extremely long limbs and tail, is the most adept and acrobatic of all New World monkeys. This species is light in build, with a small head.

The only species in its genus, the blackbuck is one of the few antelope in which the coloration of male and female is dissimilar. The dominant male in the herd is dark, almost black on back and sides and has long, spirally twisted horns.

Blue whales are also probably the biggest creatures that have ever lived. It has a blue-grey body, with spots along its back and a pale pleated throat. The blue whale may weigh more than 161 US t (146 te). Its body is streamlined and, despite its enormous bulk.